The Legend of Spring Heeled Jack

Spring Heeled Jack was a popular character usually appearing in English folklore that tells of a mysterious man with hideous features able to jump at extraordinary heights. The stories started during the Victorian Era where different sightings of such a creature were reported all over England. The first ever claimed sighting of Spring Heeled Jack was reported in 1837.

Initial Sightings

The first sighting of Spring Heeled Jack came from a businessman walking home late at night. He was suddenly surprised by a mysterious figure that easily jumped over the high cemetery railings and landed right in front of him. Although there was no attack being reported, a physical description of the creature was provided. It tells of a man-like devilish creature with large pointed ears and reddish glowing eyes.

One of the first violent encounters with Spring Heeled Jack dealt with an attack on a woman named Polly Adams in 1837. It was shortly followed by a report of a certain servant Mary Stevens who was attacked while walking towards Lavender Hill. She reported of a hideous creature leapt towards her from a dark alley and began to mistreat her and kiss her face. The leaping character was yet again seen somewhere near the home of Ms. Stevens, victimizing another poor woman.

Notable Reports

The sightings of Spring Heeled Jack became quite known when the newspapers such as The Times began to include articles on such sightings. It began to establish some notoriety when stories of girls from well-off families being attacked by the hideous creature began to spread. Most notable of which were the attacks on Jane Alsop and Lucy Scales sometime in 1838, in the sense that they were the first victims who came from well to do families and not as servants as the previous victims were known to be.

Later Reports

Later reports of Spring Heeled Jack began to come out every now and then. The said reports began to spread from other parts of England. Sometimes sightings of the creature stopped for awhile and then come out with a new wave of sightings from different places. Last of the known sightings were said to occur in 1888 and 1904 where people reported sighting Jack in rooftops. Soon even other countries in the later years also reported of sighting a figure similar nature and character.